The Emperor’s New Clothes — North Idaho College Edition
The Emperor's New Clothes was a favorite tale of mine as a child. Two swindlers arrive at the capital city of an emperor who spends lavishly on clothing at the expense of state matters. Posing as weavers, they offer to supply him with magnificent clothes that are invisible to those who are stupid or incompetent. The emperor hires them, and they set up looms and go to work. A succession of officials, and then the emperor himself, visit them to check their progress. Each sees that the looms are empty but pretends otherwise to avoid being thought a fool.
Finally, the weavers report that the emperor's suit is finished. They mime dressing him and he sets off in a procession before the whole city. The townsfolk uncomfortably go along with the pretense, not wanting to appear inept or stupid, until a child blurts out that the emperor is wearing nothing at all. The people then realize that everyone has been fooled. Although startled, the emperor continues the procession, walking more proudly than ever.
The story that has unfolded at NIC is similar. Elite establishment trustees accustomed to having their way have been enjoying the power and prestige that comes from managing a “cash cow” community college sitting on the most valuable real estate in the whole state. They are the swindlers. They arrogantly assume that the citizens who elected them are too ignorant to see what crooks they are, but when some new trustees get elected, they begin sounding the alarm. A succession of city “officials” who support the swindlers pretend not to know what they are doing, but an elaborate plan is needed to fool the citizens.
The swindlers mime filing a complaint with the agency controlling accreditation. They spin a tale accusing the newly elected trustees of endangering the college. Having comrades inside the accreditation agency makes this easier. Their friends in high places work tirelessly to shore up their accusations, and the town crier goes tirelessly up and down the streets of the town night and day, declaring the new trustees are incompetent fools who must be removed before they destroy the college. All the while, the swindlers are the ones plotting the demise of the college.
Their plan almost succeeds, but fortunately, some citizens see what is really happening and fight back, exposing the accreditation complaint as a “frame-up”, the act of framing someone, by providing false evidence or false testimony in order to falsely prove someone guilty of a crime. The swindlers themselves were guilty of the very act they accused the new trustees of when filing the complaint to the accreditation agency! The town crier, the elite establishment trustees, and the city “officials” are all guilty of aiding the wrongdoing, yet they have convinced many that the new trustees are the culprit.
Read the real complaint letters for yourself (Letter 1, Letter 2) and see how this devious and well laid plan has been executed to fool all of us. Then do the right thing and demand the swindlers be removed from office. The “town crier” should be tarred and feathered and run out of town, for not reporting the truth to the citizens. Come November we have the opportunity to remove these 2 swindlers from office so they can do no more harm to the community. You can see the facts laid out very simply and accurately by going to the Idaho Tribune article entitled “Lies Exposed”. The complaint letter is there for everyone to see.
